


I Want to Come Over

by thinlizzy2



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Declarations Of Love, F/F, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Minor May Parker/OFC, Minor Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Post-Endgame, references to canon character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-08
Updated: 2019-06-08
Packaged: 2020-03-17 19:27:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18971551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thinlizzy2/pseuds/thinlizzy2
Summary: Pepper didn’t love whatever it implied about herself, but she’d been expecting a sort of stereotypical spinster: steel-gray hair in curlers, shapeless floral housecoat, big eyes blinking myopically behind thick glasses.  But the woman who opened the door was a genuine beauty, sexy as hell in a tank top and jean cut-off shorts, and Pepper felt immediately thrown off her guard.Five times that Pepper Potts visited May Parker at home, and once when May visited Pepper.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Meilan_Firaga](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meilan_Firaga/gifts).



Pepper was determined to do everything she could do make it easier for Tony. That meant delegating more at work, so that the two of them could spend more time together, and moving out to the countryside when it became clear that the noise and bustle of New York City were just too much for him to handle now. Most of it she didn’t mind; these were their lives now and she was ready to roll with the changes. And he’d already been through so much. So when Tony absolutely couldn’t bear to talk to the kid’s aunt, Pepper volunteered even though she knew it would be rough. 

 

She didn’t love whatever it implied about herself, but she’d been expecting a sort of stereotypical spinster: steel-gray hair in curlers, shapeless floral housecoat, big eyes blinking myopically behind thick glasses. But the woman who opened the door was a genuine beauty, sexy as hell in a tank top and jean cut-off shorts, and Pepper felt immediately thrown off her guard. 

 

May Parker didn’t seem to notice her surprise. “Did you find him?” Her voice held a combination of anger and fear. 

 

Pepper shook her head. “I’m sorry, what?” 

 

May scowled. “You’re from the police, right? Nice suit like that – you've got to be. _Peter_. Have they found Peter? And don’t give me any bullshit about a lot of people being missing. Peter went missing _before_ everyone else disappeared. He was off with that Stark asshole; I know it. He was gone for days before the others vanished. So it’s different.” Her voice cracked just a bit, the fear overtaking the anger for a moment. “It’s got to be different.” 

 

Pepper drew a deep breath. This was going to be even harder then she’d imagined. “I’m not from the police. Miss Parker... can I come in?” 

 

Pepper had already thought, more than once, that when it came to heartbreak there really were only two kinds of people in the world. There were the blissfully ignorant of how bad things could get, and those who already knew to expect the worst. She had suspected that May Parker would be one of the second type and her response to Pepper’s news confirmed it. Yes, there was the shudder of pain, the agonized wail, the instant tears, but she clearly knew how to absorb the grief in the same way that a skilled boxer’s body understands how to take a punch. Surprisingly, that only made Pepper feel worse. 

 

“He died a hero,” Pepper said as they sat on May’s sofa, surrounded by pictures of the boy in question. “He died trying to save billions of lives. I know that right now that might not help, but-” 

 

“It helps.” May interrupted her with a wave of her hand. “It’s how he would have wanted to go. That stupid brilliant brave wonderful... idiot.” She blew her nose. “It’s better that I know. Thank you for coming to let me know.” 

 

“Is there anything I can do for you?” Pepper suddenly wanted to give her a hug, despite not generally being the hugging type. 

 

May didn’t look like the hugging type either. “No. I just need...” She sighed. “I don’t know what I need, but I don’t think you can help with it.” 

 

That was permission to leave if Pepper had ever heard it, but she found herself oddly hesitant. “I’d like to come back, if you don’t mind. To check on you. I won’t drop in or anything; I’ll call first. If it’s okay.” 

 

May wiped at her eyes. “You don’t have to do that.” 

 

“I want to.” Pepper found that she genuinely meant it. “Let me do it for me. I’d really like to know that you’re all right.”


	2. Chapter 2

Pepper was more nervous than she probably had to be, bringing Morgan to May’s apartment. 

 

Their once-weekly visits had fallen off a bit over the last few months. She didn’t expect May to hold that against her though; she’d been heavily pregnant after all, and May wasn’t the grudge-holding type anyway. But to show up with her child, after May had essentially lost hers in the most traumatic way possible, just felt viciously unfair. But she _missed_ May, and wanted to see her, and she did say she wanted to see the baby. 

 

She needn’t have worried. May’s face lit up when she saw Morgan, and her arms floated up from her sides like she couldn’t wait to hold her. By the time Pepper was settled, with her diaper bag in the corner and the latest example of May’s prodigious baking skills in her lap, Morgan was cuddled up against May’s chest like it was where she’d always wanted to be and Pepper was mentally kicking herself for not having come sooner. 

 

“You’re so good with her,” Pepper marveled. “She usually hates strangers.” 

 

“I used to nanny a bit, after high school.” May laughed as Morgan captured one of her fingers in her chubby little fist. “To save up for college.” 

 

“You went to college?” Pepper didn’t mean to sound surprised, but May had never mentioned it before. 

 

“No. I met Ben, and that distracted me. I figured I’d get to use the nanny skills on my own kids, but he was gone before that happened.” 

 

And Pepper felt horrible again. She knew the story; May had already told her about Ben Parker, their whirlwind courtship, their spur-of-the-moment Vegas elopement and the crazy love that went with it. And then the robbery-gone-wrong and the stray bullet that ended everything before it had even had a proper chance to begin. Then Peter had come and Peter had gone, and May was sitting on her second-hand sofa that was starting to sag, holding Ivy-league, Forbes-500 Pepper’s baby. It didn’t seem fair. 

 

That unfairness prompted her to speak again. “You should think about going back now. “ 

 

“Right,” May chucked. “Can’t you just see me now, doing body shots with some frat guys during pledge week?” 

 

Pepper was pretty sure that the vast majority of college boys would still be 100% happy to do anything with May’s body that she decided to allow, but that was beside the point. “No, seriously. There are lots of mature students now; it wouldn’t all be a bunch of kids. When I was doing my MBA-” 

 

“Not interested.” May gestured at Pepper’s empty plate. “Another muffin?” 

 

Pepper knew she shouldn’t, but she very rarely let herself have carbs and May’s muffins were nothing short of amazing. She held out her plate for another. “You might want to think about Culinary Arts. You’d be top of your class.” When May didn’t respond, she decided to give it one more shot. “Is it the money? Because Stark Industries has loads of scholarships available, and I’d recommend you.” 

 

“No.” May gave her a plate and a look that told Pepper it was definitely time to shut the hell up. “I have Peter’s college fund; I haven’t touched it. I haven’t been able to bear it. But I have a good job, Pepper. It took me a really long time to get it, and I’m not sure if I can risk that. I have benefits and PTO and my boss is decent. I know that might not sound like a lot to you, but for me it’s important.” 

 

“I’m sorry.” Pepper felt awful. “I just want to help.” 

 

“You want to help?” May smiled at her and Pepper knew she was forgiven. “Come see me more often. I miss you. And bring this little pumpkin with you, because I think she and I are going to be good friends.” 

 

Pepper was only too happy to agree. 

 

But when she called May a few weeks later, wondering if it would be okay to drop by with movies and wine, May sounded a bit distracted. “Actually Pepper, can I call you back? Tomorrow maybe?” 

 

Pepper tried not to be hurt. “Sure, no problem. Is everything okay?” 

 

“Everything’s fine. It’s just... I’ve got class tonight.” Pepper felt her mouth drop open. “And if you start gloating I swear I’m dropping out just out of spite. It’s just night school, two days a week. Intro to business.” 

 

“I think that’s wonderful!” Pepper could feel herself grinning like a loon. “Really, it’s amazing, May.” 

 

“Wonderful and amazing are a bit of a stretch. But so far it’s okay. I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow if you’re free.” 

 

“I’ll be there,” Pepper promised. She kept smiling long after she hung up the phone.


	3. Chapter 3

The memorial service was a bit of a whirlwind, but Pepper had been glad for the distraction it had provided. Dozens of superheroes, military people and other VIPs had crowded into her home, their presences going a long way towards filling up the space that Tony used to inhabit with his boundless energy. But they couldn’t stay forever, and before too long it was just Pepper and Morgan alone in a house that Tony had built for the three of them to live in together. She was doing her best to keep it together; she really was, but one night it just all got to be too much for her, and she ended up in her car with Morgan, her blankie and a hastily packed bag at 1am. 

 

May didn’t complain when she opened the door, even though Pepper’s call had almost definitely woken her up. She greeted Pepper with a warm hug as Morgan darted past them both to throw herself into Peter’s arms. Pepper thought about how thrilled Tony would be to see the two of them getting along so well already. 

 

He’d be thrilled just to see Peter here, alive, and coping better than anyone could have hoped. The boy was adjusting so well to everything: the loss of his mentor, the reality of his life in 2023. Pepper was beginning to understand why May hadn’t been able to stand dismantling Peter’s old bedroom and why Tony had decided he was worth risking everything for. The kid was truly something special. 

 

“Come on, Sprite.” Peter hoisted Morgan onto his hip. “I’ll show you where you and your mom are going to sleep. I’m going to sleep on the couch for a bit so you guys can have my room. No playing with my spider stuff, unless you want to start eating flies for dinner though.” Morgan giggled and made a face. 

 

Peter blushed when he felt Pepper watching him. “I’m just joking, I promise. I put all the dangerous stuff away; you can check.” 

 

“I trust you,” Pepper reassured him. His blush got even deeper. “I’m sorry to put you out though. Morgan and I can take the couch.” 

 

A chorus of Parker voices insisted that was ridiculous and Pepper was too tired to argue. 

 

But once she and Morgan were tucked into Peter’s bed, in his definitely child-proofed and spider-free room, Pepper found it impossible to sleep. She wasn’t used to any of this, being the person who needs help and comfort instead of being the helper and comforter. She told herself that it was only temporary and that things would get back to normal soon. When she realized how untrue that was, she tried reassuring herself that she’d find a new form of normal soon, and that would be okay. Finally, when she couldn’t lie to herself or watch the glowing red numbers of Peter’s clock change for one second longer, she gave up and wandered over to May’s room. 

 

May had clearly been sleeping, but she pulled back the covers and beckoned Pepper in. Too tired to refuse and retreat, Pepper lay down on her worn flannel sheets and felt the vise gripping her chest loosen up just a tiny bit. As May tucked the blankets over them both, Pepper’s eyes floated shut and when her friend’s hand closed around hers, warm and safe, Pepper finally managed to drift off to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Peter’s high school graduation party was kind of adorable. It was pretty obvious that neither Peter nor his friends were the coolest kids in school, but that meant they were all pretty thrilled to spend their graduation night crowded into Peter’s living room playing video games, talking loudly about technology and their college plans and eating all the delicious snacks that May’s new catering company was happily testing out on them. 

 

Pepper kept an eye on Morgan to make sure she wasn’t bothering the bigger kids, but Peter treated her like he always did – as his little sister – and the others seemed to take their cues from him pretty readily. MJ was happily showing Morgan the new apps on her StarkPhone and Ned laughed as she stole his fedora and plunked it down on her own small head. Pepper watched as the hat sinking down to cover Morgan’s eyes reduced the group to gales of laughter, and then she wandered off to the kitchen in search of more of the amazing spinach puffs. 

 

The sight she encountered there made her nearly drop her plate. 

 

May was entwined with what Pepper had assumed was just one of her newly-hired servers. The two of them were joined at the mouth, with May’s hands buried in the other woman’s wild blonde curls and the stranger’s hands snaking down May’s back to cup her ass. The surprised noise Pepper had made interrupted their little tryst, and the two of them broke apart with May laughing and the other woman looking somewhat less amused. 

 

“I’m sorry!” Pepper hurried to apologize. “I just wanted...” She gestured at her plate. “I’ll go.” 

 

“Don’t be silly.” May took Pepper’s plate and began to fill it up. “Pepper, this is Marla. We met at school; she’s doing her HR degree. Marla, this is Pepper Potts-Stark. I’ve told you about her.” 

 

Was it Pepper’s imagination, or did Marla’s mouth tighten when she heard Pepper’s name? “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” She stuck out her hand, and after a moment that felt a lot longer Marla shook it. 

 

“Nice to meet you too.” 

 

“Hon, can you see if the kids are ready for dessert yet?” May pulled a tray of cupcakes from the oven. “These’ll be cool soon.” 

 

They both watched Marla go. As soon as she was out of earshot, May wrinkled her nose. “So we gave you a bit of a surprise, huh?” 

 

“No! Well, yes. But it’s fine. Really. I just didn’t know you were seeing anyone.” 

 

She could hear Marla laughing with the kids in the living room. The woman had a distinctive laugh – loud and almost honking. _She sounds like a cross between a goose and a foghorn,_ Pepper thought. She immediately mentally reprimanded herself, surprised at her own cruelty. 

 

“It’s new,” May confided, bringing Pepper back into the moment. “Early days. But we’ll see.” She must have picked up on Pepper’s discomfort. “This isn’t when I find out you’ve actually been a heinous bigot all along, is it? Because that would really suck.” 

 

“Not at all!” Pepper hurried to reassure her. “I just didn’t know you liked women too. But it’s fine. More than fine, actually. Just ask my freshman college roommate. And my roommate in junior year as well.” 

 

May blinked in surprise. “What happened in your sophomore year?” 

 

“I had a single room.” 

 

May burst out laughing. “Fair enough. God, look at the two of us and the things we don’t talk about, huh? Well, good. I’m glad we’re okay. I was a bit nervous about telling you.” 

 

“Don’t be silly." Pepper wanted to reach out and hug her, but for some reason she held back. “Everything is absolutely fine.”


	5. Chapter 5

Everything was far from fine. 

 

Pepper tried. She really did. She encouraged May to invite Marla along whenever they made plans. She sat across from the two of them in several cute little restaurants and sipped at her small soda as the two of them shared popcorn and watched movies beside her. For one agonizingly awkward weekend, they flew out to Atlanta to visit Peter at Georgia Tech. Pepper used Morgan as an excuse to never repeat the experience; she claimed the flights were just too tiring for her daughter. She didn’t like lying, but there was no way to tell the truth. 

 

The truth was that she and Marla just didn’t get along. Pepper had tried, she really did. But there always seemed to be a sort of unspoken awkwardness between them, something that she couldn’t explain but was always aware of. Marla never laughed at her jokes, never smiled at Pepper with her eyes, never seemed truly glad to see them when Pepper and Morgan would arrive in Queens. It was important to Pepper to spend time with May and so she endured it, but the ease and fun from when it had just been the two of them was getting harder and harder to find. One day she realized that May never invited her to events when Marla would be present; it was only Pepper who made those invitations. She took that as a hint to stop asking. 

 

But, of course, that limited the amount of time she could spend with May. She hadn’t realized how much she’d gotten used to seeing the other woman over the years. Without May around, there was no one to watch silly movies with, no one who wanted to explore fun new neighborhood bars with her, no one to pile her plate high with amazing homemade pastas or slip a packet of peanut butter cookies into her bag for her to discover. It wasn’t that Pepper was lonely; that wasn’t it. After all, she had Morgan. She had Rhodey and Happy and her work. 

 

It was more specific than loneliness. She just missed May Parker. 

 

One night, she managed to convince herself that she was being silly about the whole thing. May had a girlfriend who Pepper didn’t especially like; that was fine. It wasn’t ideal, but it was no reason to spend all her spare time moping around at home like some heartbroken teenager whose childhood friend had started dating before she had. All she needed to do was talk to May, clear the air and suggest some friend-time. She reached for her phone and then immediately put it back down again. This wasn’t something she felt like doing over texts, and who actually called anyone on the phone anymore? And the truth was, she wanted to see May’s face. 

 

She let the nanny know where she would be and then called for the car. 

 

It wasn’t until she was driving through Queens that it occurred to her that May might not be home. Or that she might be in bed; it was dark and late enough that there were only a few other cars on the streets. But when she pulled in May’s building, the lights in her unit were still mostly on. Pepper sat in the parking lot and looked up at the little buttery squares of light in relief. She may not have realized until right at that moment how much she wanted this to work out. 

 

A figure appeared in May’s window, and even though she knew that she couldn’t be seen in her car Pepper still raised her hand to wave. Then she promptly dropped it. 

 

The figure in the window was taller than May, and broader in the shoulders. Pepper couldn’t make out her face with the light behind her, but she could see her wild mass of corkscrew curls. May had never worn her hair like that, not in all the years that Pepper had known her. 

 

It was definitely Marla. There was no doubt in Pepper’s mind. 

 

The figure in the window drew the curtains shut, and it felt like a door slamming. 

 

Pepper dropped her head. Her eyes were stinging with tears and she felt genuinely crushed. The depth and sharpness of her disappointment surprised her for just a moment, and then it dawned on her that it really wasn’t much of a surprise at all. 

 

She brushed angrily at her eyes and started her car for the long drive home.


	6. Chapter 6

Pepper awoke one morning to the sound of someone leaning on a car horn. Her mind kicked into overdrive - _emergency, suits, MORGAN_ \- but the noise cut itself off as suddenly as it had started. It was replaced with a familiar voice, welcome and beautiful but sounding angry as hell. “I’m not leaving, Pepper! You can come out here and talk to me now or I can camp out in your driveway. Your call!” The honking started again. 

 

Pepper didn’t have neighbors, but she knew it was only a matter of time before one of the servants called the police. So she grabbed her robe and headed for the driveway. 

 

May’s face was dark with anger. She gave the horn one extra-loud punch when she saw Pepper and then swung down from the driver’s seat. She stalked over to Pepper with so much fury that Pepper raised a hand to the windows to warn the staff that she was all right and they didn’t need to alert anyone. 

 

“You changed your phone number.” May was clearly too angry for any kind of greeting. 

 

“I’m sorry,” Pepper began. She really was. She’d meant to call May and tell her about her new phone, but every time she started to try she’d just imagined Marla picking up the phone and wondering why Pepper would be bothering her girlfriend. 

 

May was in no mood for apologies. “For weeks, I’m calling you and there’s no answer. I leave messages; I send texts. Nothing! But I see you on the news at all your press conferences, so I know you’re okay. So I figure you’re busy; you’ll get in touch when you have time. But last night I called again – just figured I’d _try_ \- and it said your number was out of service!” She stopped and wiped at her eyes. “Fuck this, Pepper. I thought we were friends. We _are_ friends. Why are you doing this to me? What did I do?” 

 

It hadn’t even occurred to Pepper that May would be blaming herself. Just hearing those words made her heart hurt. “Nothing! You didn’t do anything. I just know how busy you’ve been, with school and your business, and... Marla.” 

 

“Marla and I broke up.” May glared at her. “Almost a month ago. Which you would know if you ever answered the phone.” 

 

“I’m sorry.” Pepper hadn’t heard her own voice sound so insincere in a very long time. “What happened?” 

 

“Like I said, I was upset I couldn’t find you. And Marla was... upset that I was upset. She was upset because of _why_ I was upset.” 

 

“I don’t understand,” Pepper said, although she was beginning to. At the very least, she hoped she was beginning to understand correctly. 

 

May rolled her eyes. “Seriously? You went to all those fancy rich-girl schools and you need me to spell this out for you? You’re not that stupid, Pepper.” There was a fondness in her voice that she wasn’t even trying to hide anymore, and it made Pepper feel warm all over. “Just... just have enough respect for me to tell me if I’m wasting my time, okay?” 

 

Pepper took a deep breath. “I didn’t call you – I _couldn’t_ call you – because every time I tried I imagined Marla answering the phone or I got scared I’d hear her voice in the background. And I told myself that we could still be friends and I tried. But I don’t want that, May. I don’t want to just be friends with you. You’re so beautiful, and you’re smart, and you’re the strongest person I know, and I can’t just be around you and not-” 

 

No one had kissed Pepper since Tony had died, and there had been a time when she’d wondered if she’d ever even want to be kissed again. But as May Parker’s soft mouth pressed down against hers, as she felt May’s hands in her hair and the beginnings of desire starting to slowly curl in her belly, Pepper knew. She seized May’s shoulders, pulling her closer and kissing her back with a hunger she couldn’t imagine trying to contain. 

 

“I take it back.” May gasped as Pepper broke off from her mouth and began to kiss her neck. “You are stupid. All you had to do was ask.” She ducked her head, reclaiming Pepper’s mouth in another fierce kiss. Her leg slid between Pepper’s thighs, and it took her a moment to realize that she was grinding shamelessly against her best friend right in the middle of her driveway. 

 

“Wait-” It took a huge feat of will for her to pull away. “We can’t-” 

 

“Okay.” May gasped, but stopped. Pepper stared at her. May’s eyes were dark with desire; her pupils were huge. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips were swollen and deep red. She was the most gorgeous sight Pepper could ever imagine. “Sort of mixed signals – but okay. Are you all right? What’s going on?” 

 

Pepper smiled and gathered up both of May’s hands in hers. “I just mean we can't do this _here_. Morgan. And the staff.” 

 

May smiled back as she understood. “Staff. My God. I’ve genuinely fallen for a rich girl, haven’t I?” 

 

“She’s fallen for you back,” Pepper promised. She pulled May forward, leading her towards the house and some sense of privacy. “Please. Come on in.”

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Meilan_Firaga for Marvel Femslash Exchange 2019. I've been wanting to write something with these two for a while, so thank you so much for the opportunity! I hope you enjoyed the results.


End file.
